Temporarily joining two rigid pieces of pipe is necessary in a number of industries. These joins can be made by using hammer unions, other types of joins, etc. However, because these joins are only meant to be temporary, they are often not as strong as joins made to permanently connect the ends of two pipes, such as by simply welding the pipes together or coupling them in a more permanent manner. In many cases, especially when the joined pipes are going to be used to convey a highly pressurized fluid, it is often desirable to connect or tether the ends of the pipes together in addition to using the temporary join. In this manner, if the highly pressurized fluid passing through the pipes causes the temporary join to fail (i.e. a blowout), the tethering of the ends of the pipes can keep the ends of the pipes from moving too far. These pipes often also convey gases and solids in addition to or instead of fluids and can be subjected to abrasion and blowouts can release gas into surroundings.
Previously, a number of measures have been taken to attempt to tether the ends of the two pipes together in the event that a temporary coupling fails and the pressurized fluid inside causes the two pipes to blow apart. However, many of these measures have not been all that successful and/or easy to use.